Lea Salonga and Eva Noblezada To Star in Touching Filipina-American Drama ‘Yellow Rose’

The musical drama feature is led by award-winning documentary film and commercial director Diane Paragas, whose work has appeared on Showtime, MTV, Bravo, PBS, Discovery Channel, and BET.

“Yellow Rose” follows an aspiring 17-year-old Filipino-American singer named Rose, who dreams of becoming a country singer. However, she is forced to run away after her mother is arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

On her harrowing journey, Rose manages to find her way to Austin, Texas where she meets underground country singer Dale Watson (“Friday Night Lights”), who takes her in. She must choose to pursue her dream as a singer, and become the next Loretta Lynn, or face deportation with her mother back to the Philippines.

“With the increased demand for diverse Asian American stories in Hollywood, I can’t think of a better time to develop this film,” Paragas said about the movie, which features original music composed and performed by the cast and director. “Yellow Rose has been in development for over 15 years and we’ve selected an incredibly talented cast to help tell this story.”

Salonga (“Once on This Island,” “Miss Saigon”), Noblezada (“Miss Saigon,” “Les Miserables”), and Watson will be joined by Gustavo Gomez (“The Walking Dead,” “Animal Kingdom”), Libby Villari (“Boyhood”), Liam Booth (“Ghosts Never Sleep”), and veteran Filipino actress Princess Punzalan (“Mulawin” “Mula sa Puso”).

Producers Cecilia Mejia (“The Unstoppable,” “Split Persona”), Orian Williams (“Control,” “Shadow of the Vampire”), Rey Cuerdo (“Ulam,” “Motherland”), and co-producer Jeremiah Abraham (Warner Bros Entertainment, IW Group) will join Paragas, who will also serve as one of the producers of “Yellow Rose.”

The 22-year-old stage performer of Filipino and Mexican descent received her first ever Tony Award nomination last year for the West End’s production of “Miss Saigon” in London for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical, Charlotte Observer reported.

Salonga, meanwhile, won her first Tony Award in 1991 for her portrayal of Kim in “Miss Saigon.”

Featured Image via Instagram / livevamaria (Left), msleasalonga (Right)